Programs & Events
NOTE: All forthcoming meetings will be held on Zoom unless noted otherwise.
Click on the event to get details on how to get your tickets.
The California Writers Club offers a multitude of activities and programs for its members and for the public.
Writers Groups
Our ongoing Critique Groups help writers practice and polish their craft. We have a climate action group, the Wolf Pack Writers, and a poetry group, Poetrope. See Groups for more info.
Speaker Programs
Our informative and interesting Speaker Programs are the focus of our monthly Meetings. These meetings are open to the public.
Workshops
We also offer monthly Workshops for writers by professionals, with special rates for members.
Contests
Two annual Contests: the 5th Grade Writing Contest and the Write On! Story Contest (formerly the WestSide Story Contest), celebrate local writers. Occasionally we hold a poetry contest at year’s end as well.
Our contests are currently on hiatus. If you’d be interested to help organize the next one, please contact us.
Conferences
We promote various Writers Conferences and our members can get discounts to several.
Recent Events
We also have a more concise list of past speakers.
Poets on Earth: Environmental Write-In, Reading, and Open Mic
ATTN: Wolfpack Writers! Let’s howl! We interrupt our regularly scheduled speaker series with an urgent call to gather and raise our voices! From Earthday.org: “We have just over a decade to halve our emissions to avoid the most devastating impacts of climate change on our food supply, national security, global health, extreme weather, and more.“There…
“Retirement Planning- Snapshot Advice for Authors” with Mike Lockwood on March 17th, 2024
Snapshot Advice for Authors Mike Lockwood, author of Decision Decade – A Financial Roadmap for your Golden Years, will give some insight on his 35+ year of providing advice to help you not only get to, but get through retirement. He will share some easy to understand concepts that anyone can implement as they prepare…
“Hiring a Virtual Assistant” with Mia Borja on February 18th, 2024
How 10 Hours a Month Will Change Your Career (and Your Life) As a writer’s business grows, so do the overwhelming number of tasks. Any writer who is struggling with productivity will find something interesting in Mia Borja’s talk on how a VA can help make their lives easier and more productive. If you are a…
We’re Leading the Poetry Express Open Mic February 20th
Sponsored by the Berkeley Branch of the California Writers Club, Poetry Express is back in Berkeley! Come on out to 2727 California Street in south Berkeley to hear open mic poetry. 2727 California Street is a multi-use event space and cooperative art gallery. The open mic readers will be surrounded by paintings as they express…
“Open Your Soul Without Spilling It All” with Kevin Fisher-Paulson, LIVE January 21st, 2024
We are excited to welcome TWO great speakers as we experimenting with a return to the real world in January, meeting in Downtown Oakland at 1955 Broadway, right outside the 19th Street BART Station. You can also dial into the meeting LIVE with Google Meet. Advance tickets recommended; walk-ins welcome. Working with Word Limits Every…
“Grant Writing 101” with Susan Neufeld Paul on November 19th, 2023
Find the money that is looking for YOU. You may know how to write poetry, fiction, and non-fiction…but grant writing is an art in itself. Penning genre bestsellers isn’t the only way to earn a living as a writer! The nonprofit philanthropic world knows that art is too often undervalued, and steps in to sustain…